Hamas leader on Thursday welcomed what he said is "new language" by President Barack Obama. In a speech delivered in Syria, Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal said: "We appreciate Obama's new language towards Hamas." "And it is the first step in the right direction toward a dialogue without conditions, and we welcome this."

"Dealing with Hamas and all the Palestinian resistance forces must be based on respecting the will of the Palestinian people and its democratic choice, and not based on placing conditions," he added.

He added the United States and its allies must emphasize "the need to lift the Israeli occupation" if it wants to rally the Palestinians and their Arab allies behind a peace deal. "When the Obama administration starts this kind of effort, we and the rest of the Palestinians will be very prepared to cooperate with this administration and with every international effort that serves this."